FTO for issuing licence to oil marketing firm

Points out delay can cause loss of billions in taxes and duties

ISLAMABAD:

The Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) has directed the Petroleum Division (Ministry of Energy) secretary to expedite the issuance of permanent licence to an oil and gas marketing firm, which is facing delay without any reason.

FTO Dr Jah on Friday took notice of inordinate delay in the issuance of licence to Hi-Tech Lubricants by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra).

The FTO mentioned that the company was registered with the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and had National Tax Number (NTN).

He added that the firm imported petroleum products and was granted provisional licence for establishing a new oil marketing company by Ogra on October 21, 2016 for marketing its products in Punjab. The company sold Rs2.9 billion worth of petroleum products in Punjab till June 2021 and was expected to sell 60 million litres till June 2022.

He said that the firm paid around Rs757 million in duties and taxes and the figure was expected to rise to Rs2 billion till June 2022.

The licence of the company had expired and it applied for the issuance of a permanent licence, which has been delayed. According to estimates, the delay could cause a loss of Rs2 billion to the national exchequer annually on account of duties and taxes alone, the FTO said. He was of the view that the fast-tracking of the process would steer ease of doing business and act as a catalyst for the national economy. “It will also enable the company to contribute its share of duties and taxes to the national exchequer,” he said.

In pursuance of the FTO’s recommendations, the Ministry of Energy (Petroleum Division) requested Ogra to expedite the processing of all licence renewal cases without further delay to protect investments.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 27^th, 2021.

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